Vietnam province to build 30MW solar PV plant

The plant is being developed as a joint venture between local energy companies Song Lam Son La Energy JSC and Song Lam Investment & Construction Co., Ltd. and is being entirely domestically-funded, with a total investment of VND800 billion (US$35 million). Son La Energy JSC’s Sinh Tien Tran told PV Tech that the companies are still in the process of selecting banks to finance the project.

However, the two firms will directly finance 30% (VND242 billion) (US$10.6 million) of the cost, while the remaining 70% will be covered by commercial banks.

Song Lam Son La Energy JSC told PV Tech that construction is expected to start in Q4 2017 with commercial operation anticipated for Q4 2018. The project will be located on 650,000 square meters of land in the Yen Dinh District, around 160km south of Hanoi.

The plant will also be comprised of 90,640 c-Si polysilicon modules, which Song Lam Son La Energy JSC said it selected for their popularity in the international market, as well as their competitive purchase and installation price, durability and low annual generation attenuation.

Vietnam’s solar market

The large-scale PV plant brings Vietnam one step closer to its aim of generating 10% of electricity from renewable energy sources by 2030. Local authorities have stated that the country’s burgeoning renewable energy market is generating a profit for investors as they join Vietnam’s push towards clean energy.

“During operation, the output generated by the farm shall be a clean significant power addition to power demand of Thanh Hoa province in particular and the surrounding area in general. The farm construction is in accordance with government orientation of clean power development and has a part in reduction of pollution, carbon emission caused by fossil fuels,” said Sinh Tran Tien.

The country's electricity demand is expected to grow 13% annually over the next four years.

Vietnam also recently confirmed its long-awaited feed-in tariff (FiT) scheme which will open 1 June 2017 to 30 June 2019.

“The country's feed-in tariff regime plays an important role as leverage for solar development to take full advantage of Vietnam's solar potential,” added Sinh.